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Why donít you believe in God? I get that question all the time. I always try to give a sensitive, reasoned answer. This is usually awkward, time consuming and pointless. People who believe in God donít need proof of his existence, and they certainly donít want evidence to the contrary. They are happy with their belief.

They even say things like ďitís true to meĒ and ďitís faith.Ē I still give my logical answer because I feel that not being honest would be patronizing and impolite. It is ironic therefore that ďI donít believe in God because there is absolutely no scientific evidence for his existence and from what Iíve heard the very definition is a logical impossibility in this known universe,Ē comes across as both patronizing and impolite.

Last Christmas I wrote a little essay entitled: ďA Holiday Message from Ricky Gervais: Why Iím an Atheist.Ē

The Wall Street Journal ran it, and it caused quite a stir. I was even asked to answer some of the comments.

So for Easter I thought Iíd do another one. Here it is.

A Holiday Message from Ricky Gervais: Why Iím A Good Christian.

The title of this one is a little misleading, or at least cryptic. I am of course not a good Christian in the sense that I believe that Jesus was half man, half God, but I do believe I am a good Christian compared to a lot of Christians.

Itís not that I donít believe that the teachings of Jesus wouldnít make this a better world if they were followed. Itís just that they are rarely followed.

Gandhi summed it up really. He said, ďI like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.Ē

I have always felt this way, even when I believed in God, and in a weird way I feel I am still a pretty good ďChristianĒ who doesnít believe in God.

So many Christians think that because they believe in the right God, they are automatically good and have a one-way ticket to everlasting life. Dare I say it but I suspect this is their main reason for believing. Iíve heard so many ďbelieversĒ say, ďWell, since there is no way of being sure whether there is a God or not, itís better to believe in God than not, because that way, if youíre wrong it doesnít matter and if youíre right you get everlasting life.Ē Win:win.

This is of course Pascalís Wager, which assumes that God if he exists would reward blind faith above logic and living a good life as an atheist

That just about sums up my religious, or lack thereof, beliefs. I think its far worse to believe in God and willfully ignore what he asks of us than it is to just not believe in him. Even if there is a Christian god I think he is egotistical and not deserving of worship. Saying "Worship me or go to hell" isnt really free will, that would be like a guy robbing you with a gun and defending himself by saying "well he didnt have to give me his money, it was his choice".

That just about sums up my religious, or lack thereof, beliefs. I think its far worse to believe in God and willfully ignore what he asks of us than it is to just not believe in him. Even if there is a Christian god I think he is egotistical and not deserving of worship. Saying "Worship me or go to hell" isnt really free will, that would be like a guy robbing you with a gun and defending himself by saying "well he didnt have to give me his money, it was his choice".

When the doctor says "take this medication or else you will die", is the doctor egotistical and not deserving of following his instructions simply because your failure to do so results in your death?